Since the regular season is coming quickly, I keep looking an example The hockey writers. This is a intersection season for the franchise, given that the Blue Jackets have not made the play-offs since the 2019-2020 season, which will almost return last season after being short of only two points.
Related: The top candidate of each team for 2025-26: Metropolitan Division
It feels like a Make-Or-Break next season, and as a Columbus wants to stay close to the top four of the Metropolitan Division, different players must have breakout seasons. Of course we expect a lot of production from people such as Sean Monahan, Kirill Marchenko and Zach Werenski, but I want to take a look at some names that have already flashed at the NHL level but can bring their game to a different level. Here are my three breakout candidates for the Blue Jackets 2025-26.
Note: Statistics below are of Natural Stat Trick And Quanthockey.
Denton Mateychuk
The first player I think BreakOut can breakout is Denton Mateychuk, a young two -way defender who skates well and moves the puck quickly. He has the versatility to play both the left and the right side of a few, can kill punishments and can even work his way to the second Power-Play unit, depending on his development.
Last season with the Blue Jackets he registered four goals and nine assists for 13 points, while on average he had 6:02 pm ice age. He scored his first NHL goal on January 9, 2025 and later scored the first goal in the Stadium Series -victory at the Detroit Red Wings in February.
A mobile defender with top at both ends of the ice, he looks ready for a roll boost in 2025-26 under head coach Dean Evason. My colleague Mark is here The hockey writers Projected him on the second defensive link on the left with Ivan Provorov, a place that I think fits well.
Related: 2025-26 Blue Jackets Roster Projection 3.0: Navigating by a trade request
Mateychuk must add more physicality, which can help him break out this season offensively. Although he is on the smaller side, he finished last season with 114 hits and 63 blocked shots over 45 games, which is impressive for a Rookie season. With his skates and growing trust, I see him completing his defensive game while he is also becoming more attacking, with a projected Breakout season in my book.
Adam Fantilli
Adam Fantilli has the potential to place many more points than his 54 from last season. Matching his total of 31 goal feels realistic and he could even push 40 with the type of ceiling he has.
Fantilli has a legitimate opportunity to break out and settle as one of the top ahead in the Metropolitan Division and about the Eastern Conference. In a previous article where I projected the Power-Play units of the Blue Jackets, I let him go in as the center on the second unit because of his faceoff force and scoring capacity. Just like Kirill Marchenko last season, Fantilli is ready for a big leap.
Fantilli played all 82 games and showed how reliable he is on the second line. He on average 17:28 ice age and placed 54 total points. In the Faceoff Circle he went 420/1019 (41.22%) and took the second most draws from the team behind Sean Monahan. He peaked harder in his second season, finished with 113 hits, took 100 himself and blocked 56 shots. He also hit the gym this season to prevent him from being pushed around so much. That extra power should help him win more fighting for the net, to be a stronger pre -checker and to give it even more offense.
The shooting numbers stand out attacking. He shot 191, who were the third most in the team, and scored on 16.2% of them, which was also the third highest. That means that about 16% of his shots came in, which is a pretty solid efficiency. If he shoots more, even more consistent production will follow.
Mark Scheig projects Fantilli as the second line center with Dmitri Voronkov on his left side and knows Johnson on his right side, another man who I think can break out this next season. He on average 0.659 points per match last season, and I think he can push that number closer to a point per match in the 2025-26 season. That is not an easy goal to hit, but I am very high in his growth and what he can become like a top-six centerman.
Jet Greaves
Between the Cleveland Monsters and the Blue Jackets of the American Hockey League (AHL), Jet Greaves went with 5-0-0 in just seven days at the end of last season. That piece included four games in five nights, which showed its sustainability and ability to perform when it mattered the most. Now that Daniil Tarasov was traded on the Florida Panthers earlier this season, Greaves and Elvis Merzlikins could be realistically divided this season, probably in a 60/40 role.
Depending on how October goes, where the blue coats are confronted with seven out of 10 2025 Playoff teams, Greaves can even take the role of the starter. In 11 NHL matches with Columbus last season, he placed a 1.91 goals against average (GAA) and a .938 savings percentage (SV%), ending with a 7-2-2 record.
Related: Jet Greaves deserves to be the starting goalkeeper of the Blue Jackets
Greaves is calm and smart between the pipes. He reads the game well, follows pucks through screens and remains composed when they are attacked. On 6-foot-0 he is a bit smaller than most goalkeepers at NHL level, but he is doing well with great positioning and athletics. He can still improve his puck handling, but he is a smart player who understands the game well.
According to Pavel Analytics Powered by TDDTThe underlying map of Greaves was excellent in his short NHL monster. Statistics such as weighted goals against average percentage (GAA%), goals saved above the average percentage (GSAE%) and a high-overs value percentage suggest that he could be a future franchise goalkeeper.
Also by NHL -Rand Statistics, Greaves stopped 46 of 47 shots with a high danger (.979 SV%) and 45 of 47 midrange shots (.957 SV%) over a five-game stretch in eight days before the Blue Jackets later last season. At the age of 24 he is still young and he has much more to prove. He has only played 21 NHL matches so far, with a 10-9-2 record, 2.62 GAA EN .918 SV%. All those figures, combined with the way the team found out last season, indicates that he is ready to really break out a full NHL season.
When they look ahead, the Blue Jackets naturally need their most important players to deliver, but they also need a few Breakout seasons to stay competitive in the metro this season. The three players mentioned above have to take steps forward when Columbus finally goes back in the play -offs.
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